Stephen Eugene Hallstrom passed away July 2, 2018 on his farm near Oakville, WA. He was born November 19, 1943 in Fosston, MN, to Raymond and Antoinette (DeMaster) Hallstrom. Steve graduated from Ridgefield High School (1961), earned a BS in Mathematics from the University of Washington (1966), worked as a software engineer at the Boeing Company, and became Associate and Acting Director of Academic Computing at UW, retiring in 1993.At that time, he turned to organic farming near Carnation, WA, selling vegetables at the University District and Columbia City Farmers Markets in Seattle for 23 years with his wife, Cecelia. Their Tolt Gardens booth became Let Us Farm when they moved from the Snoqualmie Valley to the Chehalis Valley in 2001.While on the Boards of the Grays Harbor Conservation District, the Chehalis River Basin Land Trust and the South Sound Community Farmland Trust, he advocated for creative strategies and land use policies to help preserve natural resources, focused especially on preservation of farmland so it would be affordable to beginning farmers.Steve was a continuous member of the National Grange for 43 years, belonged to the Audubon Society in Seattle and Grays Harbor, and hosted farming interns so they could learn the how-to of farming. In a final act of love for the land, he and his wife Cecelia placed a conservation easement on their farm with PCC Farmland Trust to preserve it in perpetuity as a farm. (See a story about Let Us Farm.)As a farmer, mentor, and policy advocate, he left a legacy of preserved farmlands and farming skills passed on to another generation. Steve is survived by his wife, Cecelia Boulais; former wife, Kim (Nevitt) Strange; daughter, Timi Ewbank (David); son, Brent Hallstrom (Jacqueline); granddaughter, Holli Hallstrom; and loving extended family.At Steve's request, there will be no services. Memorial donation suggestions are Grays Harbor Audubon Society, and Chehalis River Basin Land Trust.To view his obituaries or share memories, visit www.FuneralAlternatives.org and www.columbian.com/obits.